Yesterday, the House of Representatives passed the Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which will authorize the Department of Justice to investigate and prosecute certain bias-motivated crimes based on the victim's actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or disability: Hate Crimes Bill Is Approved.
Currently, the federal government can only investigate hate crimes motivated by the victim's race, color, religion, and national origin. It will also provide local authorities with more resources to combat hate crimes and give the federal government jurisdiction over prosecuting hate crimes in states where the current law is inadequate.
The bill must be passed by the Senate and signed by the president before becoming law. The Senate is expected to vote on the bill in the next couple of weeks. More here: House Passes Hate Crimes Bill.
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